JP2014071355A - Front plate for touch panel protection, touch panel sensor, and manufacturing method of front plate for touch panel protection - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a front plate for touch panel protection having excellent scratch resistance and antifouling property, and capable of improving designability or operability.SOLUTION: A front plate for touch panel protection 1 includes a transparent resin substrate 2 containing a thermoplastic resin composition, and a hard coat layer 3 formed on the transparent resin substrate 2 and made by curing an electron beam curable resin composition. The hard coat layer 3 includes at least one of a concave-convex area 10 having a concave part 11a or a convex part 11b that is at least one of a designability improvement portion and an operability improvement portion, and a curved surface area having a curved surface.

Description

  The present invention relates to a touch panel protecting front plate having a hard coat layer on the outermost surface.

  Today, touch panels are widely used as input means. In many cases, the touch panel is used together with the display device as an input means for various devices in which a display device such as a liquid crystal display or a plasma display is incorporated, for example, a ticket machine, an ATM device, a mobile phone, a game machine or the like. . In such a device, the touch panel is arranged on the display surface of the display device, which allows the touch panel to make a very direct input to the display device.

  Generally, in a touch panel, a front plate is disposed on the outermost surface for surface protection. Conventionally, tempered glass has been used for the front plate, but tempered glass has problems such as being heavy and breaking. Therefore, a change from tempered glass to a transparent resin substrate has been studied. On the other hand, the transparent resin substrate has the advantage of being light and difficult to break, but has the disadvantage that the surface is easily damaged.

  For a front plate used in a display device, a technique has been proposed in which a curable resin composition is coated on the surface of a transparent resin substrate and cured to form a hard coat layer to improve scratch resistance. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a transparent multilayer sheet for a display face plate having an acrylic resin layer on at least one side of a polycarbonate resin base sheet, and further having a hard coat layer on at least one side of the acrylic resin layer, It is disclosed that a scratch-resistant organic hard coat film of a type that is cured by irradiation with ultraviolet rays is used as a coating layer.

JP 2010-44163 A

  However, the ultraviolet curing technology has drawbacks such as relatively small ultraviolet energy, relatively long curing time, a thick film that does not easily proceed with a curing reaction, and a relatively low crosslinking density. In a hard coat layer obtained by curing a curable resin composition by ultraviolet irradiation, sufficient hardness cannot be obtained, and there is room for improvement in scratch resistance.

  In addition, the front plate used for the touch panel is also required to have good antifouling properties against fingerprints, but in the ultraviolet curing technology, the ultraviolet curable resin composition is a polymerization initiator, a sensitizer, an ultraviolet absorber, etc. There is also a problem that the antifouling property is lowered due to bleeding out of these low molecular components.

In recent years, in the touch panel, it has been studied to form a three-dimensional shape such as unevenness or a curved surface on the surface of the front plate in order to improve design and operability.
However, when a hard coat layer is formed by applying an ultraviolet curable resin composition on a transparent resin substrate having an uneven surface or a curved surface and curing it by ultraviolet irradiation, the ultraviolet curable resin composition may be uniformly applied. Since it is difficult, there is a problem that the curing reaction proceeds non-uniformly and the hardness of the hard coat layer decreases.
In addition, when the surface of the coating film of the ultraviolet curable resin composition is formed with irregularities or curved surfaces and cured by irradiation with ultraviolet light, the thickness of the coating film is not uniform. Advances in a non-uniform manner and the hardness of the hard coat layer decreases.
Further, for example, injection molding is known as a manufacturing method of a front plate having a three-dimensional shape, but when a hard coat layer is transferred to a transparent resin substrate by injection molding, an ultraviolet curable resin composition is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. As described above, the hard coat layer cured by the above method has a problem that the crosslink density is relatively low and the strength is inferior, so that the hard coat layer is cracked by the stress during molding.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is a main object of the present invention to provide a front panel for protecting a touch panel that has excellent scratch resistance and antifouling properties and can improve designability or operability. It is what.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a transparent resin substrate containing a thermoplastic resin composition, a hard coat layer formed on the transparent resin substrate, and the electron beam curable resin composition is cured. A front panel for protecting a touch panel, wherein the hard coat layer has at least part of a surface, a concave / convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion which is at least one of a design improving portion and an operability improving portion, and a curved surface There is provided a front panel for protecting a touch panel, characterized by having at least one of curved surface areas.

  According to the present invention, the electron beam curable resin composition is cured by electron beam irradiation to form a hard coat layer. Therefore, compared with the case of using an ultraviolet curable resin, the crosslink density is increased and the hardness is increased. It is possible to improve the scratch resistance. Moreover, since an electron beam curable resin composition does not require a polymerization initiator, it is possible to prevent a decrease in antifouling property due to bleed out of low molecular components. In addition, when a hard coat layer is formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation, the energy of the electron beam is relatively large, so that the curing reaction is sufficiently performed even with a non-uniform thickness. It is possible to progress, to achieve high hardness, and to form the above-described uneven region and curved surface region on the surface of the hard coat layer, thereby improving the design and operability. Furthermore, since the hard coat layer obtained by curing the electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation has a high crosslinking density and excellent strength, for example, when the hard coat layer is transferred to a transparent resin substrate by injection molding It is possible to suppress the occurrence of cracks due to stress during molding.

  In the said invention, it is preferable that the said transparent resin substrate has a level | step-difference part in the surface of the side in which the said hard-coat layer is not formed. A decorative layer, wiring, etc. can be accommodated in the step portion of the transparent resin substrate, and bubbles are mixed between the transparent resin substrate and the decorative film when the decorative layer is accommodated in the step portion. In addition, when the wiring is accommodated in the step portion, a touch panel with few steps can be obtained.

  In the present invention, a hard coat layer base material may be formed between the transparent resin substrate and the hard coat layer. For example, when an electron beam curable resin composition is applied onto a hard coat layer substrate and cured by irradiation with an electron beam from the coating film side, the hard coat layer substrate of the hard coat layer is formed. Since the surface on the non-coated side has higher hardness, the hard coat layer with higher hardness can be disposed on the outermost surface of the touch panel protection front plate of the present invention, which can further improve the scratch resistance. it can.

  In the above case, a decorative layer may be formed between the hard coat layer base material and the hard coat layer. Moreover, in this invention, the decoration film in which the decorating layer was formed on the base material for decorating layers may be formed in the surface by which the said hard-coat layer of the said transparent resin substrate is not formed. . The design can be enhanced by the decorative layer.

  In the above case, the decorative layer may have an opening. By arranging the opening of the decorative layer on the wiring of the touch panel sensor unit, it can be decorated by the decorative layer and the wiring, and it is necessary to further form the decorative layer under the opening of the decorative layer In addition, the layer structure of the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention can be simplified.

  The present invention also provides a touch panel sensor comprising a touch panel sensor section and the above-described front panel for protecting the touch panel disposed on the touch panel sensor section.

  According to this invention, since it has the above-mentioned front-panel for touch panel protection, the touch panel sensor which is excellent in abrasion resistance and antifouling property, and can improve designability and operativity can be obtained.

  Further, the present invention provides a transparent resin substrate and an uneven region formed on the transparent resin substrate and having a concave portion or a convex portion which is at least one of a design improvement site and an operability improvement site on at least a part of the surface, And a hard coat layer having at least one of curved surface areas having a curved surface, wherein the electron beam curable resin composition is applied onto the substrate for hard coat layer, A hard coat layer forming step of forming a hard coat layer by irradiating with a line, and a laminate of the hard coat layer substrate and the hard coat layer are arranged in an injection mold, and the injection mold A front surface for protecting a touch panel, comprising: an injection molding step of injecting and solidifying a thermoplastic resin composition and integrating the laminate and the transparent resin substrate. To provide a method of manufacturing.

  According to the present invention, since the electron beam curable resin composition is cured by electron beam irradiation to form a hard coat layer, as described above, a hard coat layer having excellent scratch resistance and antifouling properties can be obtained. . Moreover, the above-mentioned uneven | corrugated area | region and curved surface area | region can be formed in the surface of a hard-coat layer, without reducing hardness, and designability and operativity can be improved. Furthermore, since the hard coat layer is excellent in strength, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of cracks in the hard coat layer due to stress during molding in the injection molding process. Accordingly, it becomes possible to mold the transparent resin substrate into various shapes.

  Further, the present invention is a transparent resin substrate and an uneven region formed on the transparent resin substrate and having a concave portion or a convex portion which is at least one of a design improvement site and an operability improvement site on at least a part of the surface, And a hard coat layer having at least one of curved surface areas having a curved surface, wherein the electron beam curable resin composition is applied onto the substrate for hard coat layer, A hard coat layer forming step for forming a hard coat layer by irradiating with a line, an extrusion forming step for forming a transparent resin substrate by extruding a thermoplastic resin composition, and the hard coat layer base material And a laminate step of fusing the transparent resin substrate to the laminate of the hard coat layers. A method for producing a touch panel protecting front plate is provided.

  According to the present invention, similar to the above-described method for manufacturing a touch panel protecting front plate, it is possible to obtain a touch panel protecting front plate that is excellent in scratch resistance and antifouling properties and can improve design and operability. it can.

  The present invention is a touch panel that is excellent in scratch resistance and antifouling properties and can improve designability and operability by curing an electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation to form a hard coat layer. There exists an effect that it is possible to obtain the front plate for protection.

It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic plan view which shows an example of the front plate for touch-panel protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention, and a touchscreen sensor part. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the other example of the front plate for touch-panel protection of this invention, and a touch-panel sensor part. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of the touch panel sensor of this invention. It is process drawing which shows an example of the manufacturing method of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is process drawing which shows the other example of the manufacturing method of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. It is process drawing which shows the other example of the manufacturing method of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention.

  Hereinafter, the manufacturing method of the front plate for touch panel protection of the present invention, the touch panel sensor, and the front plate for touch panel protection will be described in detail.

A. Front plate for touch panel protection The front plate for touch panel protection according to the present invention is formed on a transparent resin substrate containing a thermoplastic resin composition and the transparent resin substrate, and is formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition. A front panel for protecting a touch panel having a coat layer, wherein the hard coat layer has at least part of a surface having a recess or a protrusion that is at least one of a design improvement site and an operability improvement site. And a curved surface region having a curved surface.

First, the front panel for protecting a touch panel of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of a touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention. In the touch panel protecting front plate 1 illustrated in FIG. 1, a hard coat layer 3 formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition is formed on a transparent resin substrate 2 containing a thermoplastic resin composition. The hard coat layer 3 has an uneven region 10 having a concave portion 11a and a convex portion 11b on a part of the surface.

2 (a) and 2 (b) are schematic plan views showing an example of a concavo-convex region in the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention.
In the touch panel protecting front plate 1 shown in FIG. 2A, the uneven region 10 has a circular convex portion 11b and a concave portion 11a disposed on the outer periphery of the convex portion 11b. This convex part 11b is used in order to operate a touch panel, and is an operativity improvement site | part, When the front plate for touch panel protection of this invention is used for a touch panel, operativity can be improved. .
In the touch panel protecting front plate 1 shown in FIG. 2B, the uneven region 10 has a recess 11 a having the shapes of the letters “A” and “1”. This recessed part 11a shows a mark, is a design improvement site, and can improve design when the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention is used for a touch panel.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another example of the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention. In the touch panel protecting front plate 1 illustrated in FIG. 3, a hard coat layer 3 formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition is formed on a transparent resin substrate 2 containing a thermoplastic resin composition. The hard coat layer 3 has a curved surface region 20 having a curved surface 21 on the entire surface. Since the entire surface of the touch panel protecting front plate 1 is a curved surface 21, when the touch panel protecting front plate is used for a touch panel, design and operability can be improved.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing another example of the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention. In the touch panel protecting front plate 1 illustrated in FIG. 4, a hard coat layer 3 formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition is formed on a transparent resin substrate 2 containing a thermoplastic resin composition. The hard coat layer 3 has an uneven region 10 having a concave portion 11a and a convex portion 11b on a part of the surface, and a curved region 20 having a curved surface 21 on the entire surface. For example, the concave portion 11b is an operability improving portion as shown in FIG. 2 (a), or the concave portion 11a is a design improving portion as shown in FIG. 2 (b). Since the entire surface of 1 is a curved surface 21, high designability and operability can be imparted by using the touch panel protecting front plate for the touch panel.

In the present invention, the hard coat layer is obtained by curing an electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation. Electron beam curing technology has a higher energy, shorter curing time, lower process temperature, and thicker coatings and opaque layers on coatings compared to ultraviolet curing technologies. Further, there are advantages such as a high crosslinking density and the need for a polymerization initiator. In particular, a high crosslink density is advantageous for the hard coat layer.
Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to increase the crosslink density of the hard coat layer to increase the hardness and to improve the scratch resistance. In addition, since the electron beam curable resin composition does not require a polymerization initiator, it is possible to prevent the antifouling property of the hard coat layer from being lowered by bleed-out of low molecular components. In addition, since the curing reaction proceeds sufficiently even when the thickness is not uniform, such as unevenness and curved surfaces, electron beam curing forms the above-mentioned uneven regions and curved regions on the surface of the hard coat layer without reducing the hardness. It is possible to improve design and operability. Furthermore, since the hard coat layer has a high crosslinking density and excellent strength, for example, when the hard coat layer is transferred to a transparent resin substrate by injection molding, the occurrence of cracks due to stress during molding can be suppressed. It becomes possible to mold the transparent resin substrate into various shapes.

  In the specification of the present application, “a concave portion or a convex portion that is at least one of the designability improving portion and the operability improving portion” means that the concave portion or the convex portion improves the designability of the touch panel. It means that the operability of input is improved, or that the design of the touch panel is improved and the operability of input of the touch panel is improved. For example, the fine unevenness having antiglare property and antireflection function improves the visibility of display on the touch panel, and is a recess or protrusion that is at least one of the design improvement site and the operability improvement site in the present invention. Not included in the department.

  Hereinafter, each structure in the front plate for touch-panel protection of this invention is demonstrated.

1. Hard coat layer The hard coat layer in the present invention is formed on a transparent resin substrate, and is obtained by curing an electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation. And a concavo-convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion which is at least one of the operability improving portions, and a curved surface region having a curved surface.
Hereinafter, the configuration of the hard coat layer will be described.

(1) Concavity and convexity region The concavity and convexity region is a region having a concave portion or a convex portion that is at least one of the designability improving portion and the operability improving portion. When the hard coat layer has an uneven area on at least a part of the surface, the design and operability of the touch panel can be improved when the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention is used for the touch panel.

  The concave portion or the convex portion may be at least one of the designability improving portion and the operability improving portion, for example, the designability improving portion, the operability improving portion, or the designability improving portion. And it may be a operability improving part.

  The concave portion or the convex portion, which is a design improvement site, is used for displaying a mark such as a character, a figure, or a symbol, for example. Moreover, the recessed part or convex part which is an operativity improvement site | part is formed corresponding to the operation means of a touch panel, specifically, a button, an icon, etc., for example.

The size of the concave portion or the convex portion is not particularly limited as long as at least one of the design property and the operability can be improved, and is appropriately selected according to the use of the concave portion or the convex portion.
In addition, the depth of the concave portion or the height of the convex portion can improve at least one of designability and operability, and can be formed by curing the electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation. If there is no particular limitation, it can be, for example, 0.1 mm or more. In the photolithography method using the ultraviolet curable resin composition, it is difficult to set the depth of the concave portion or the height of the convex portion within the above range. On the other hand, the depth of the concave portion or the height of the convex portion is preferably 5 mm or less. This is because if the depth of the concave portion or the height of the convex portion is too large, it may be difficult to form or the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention may be thick, which may impair the design and operability. .

  The uneven | corrugated area | region should just have the recessed part or convex part which is at least any one of the designability improvement site | part and the operativity improvement site | part, for example, may have only a recessed part and has only a convex part. It may have both a recessed part and a convex part.

The uneven area only needs to be arranged on at least a part of the surface of the hard coat layer. For example, when the front plate for protecting a touch panel of the present invention is used for the touch panel, the uneven area may be arranged in the operation area of the touch panel. It may be arranged in the operation region, and is appropriately selected according to the use of the concave portion or the convex portion.
For example, when the concave portion or the convex portion is a design improvement site, it is preferable that the concave and convex region is disposed in a non-operating region of the touch panel. This is because if the uneven area is arranged in the operation area of the touch panel, the operability of the touch panel may be deteriorated or the quality of the display image may be deteriorated.
On the other hand, when the concave portion or the convex portion is the operability improving portion, the concave / convex region is preferably disposed in the operation region of the touch panel, and particularly preferably disposed in the peripheral portion of the operation region. This is because if the uneven area is arranged at the center of the operation area, the operability of the touch panel may be lowered and the quality of the display image may be lowered, as in the case described above.
The “operation area” refers to an area where an image is displayed on the touch panel and a touch operation is possible. In addition, the “non-operating area” is an area arranged on the outer periphery of the operating area, and is an area where wiring or the like is formed on the touch panel.

  Further, the uneven region may be one or plural. When a plurality of uneven regions are arranged, the hard coat layer may have only an uneven region having a concave portion or a convex portion that is a design improving portion, and the concave portion or convex portion that is an operability improving portion is provided. It may have only the uneven area | region which has, and may have both the uneven | corrugated area | region which has a recessed part or a convex part which is a designability improvement part, and the uneven | corrugated area | region which has a recessed part or a convex part which is an operativity improvement part. .

(2) Curved surface region The curved surface region is a region having a curved surface. When the hard coat layer has a curved surface area on the surface, the design and operability of the touch panel can be improved when the front panel for protecting the touch panel of the present invention is used for the touch panel, similarly to the above-described uneven area. . Further, by making the surface of the hard coat layer a curved surface, the image quality can be improved and the strength of the touch panel can be increased.

The curved surface may be a concave curved surface or a convex curved surface.
The curvature radius of the curved surface is not particularly limited as long as the design property, operability, image quality, or strength can be improved, and is appropriately selected according to the purpose.

The curved surface area only needs to be arranged on at least a part of the surface of the hard coat layer, and in particular, when the front plate for protecting a touch panel of the present invention is used for the touch panel, it may be arranged in the operation area of the touch panel. Preferably, it is more preferably arranged in the entire operation region. This is because the image quality can be improved. When the curved surface area is arranged in the operation area of the touch panel, the curved area may be arranged only in the operation area, or may be arranged over the entire operation area and non-operation area.
Usually, there is one curved surface area.

(3) Hard Coat Layer The hard coat layer only needs to have at least one of the above-described concavo-convex region and curved surface region on the surface, for example, may have only the concavo-convex region, or only the curved region. You may have, and you may have both an uneven | corrugated area | region and a curved surface area | region.

  The hardness of the hard coat layer can be evaluated by a pencil hardness test (4.9 N load) defined by JIS K5600-5-4 (1999). The pencil hardness of the hard coat layer is preferably 4H or more. This is because the scratch resistance is further improved. On the other hand, the pencil hardness of the hard coat layer is preferably 8H or less. This is because if the pencil hardness is too high, brittleness increases, causing warping and cracking.

The hard coat layer is light transmissive. Specifically, the transmittance of the hard coat layer in the visible light region is preferably 80% or more, and more preferably 90% or more. This is because when the transmittance is in the above range, a hard coat layer having excellent light transmittance can be formed.
Here, the transmittance of the hard coat layer is the total light transmittance measured by the method defined in JIS K 7105.

  As the electron beam curable resin composition, there can be used monomers, oligomers and polymers having a polymerizable functional group which causes a reaction such as polymerization or dimerization directly when irradiated with an electron beam. For example, a radical polymerizable monomer or oligomer having an ethylenically unsaturated bond such as an acryl group, a vinyl group or an allyl group can be mentioned.

  Monomers and oligomers having an ethylenically unsaturated bond include 2-hydroxyethyl (meth) acrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl (meth) acrylate, hydroxybutyl acrylate, 2-hydroxy-3-phenoxypropyl acrylate, carboxypolycaprolactone acrylate, acrylic Monofunctional (meth) acrylates such as acid, methacrylic acid, acrylamide; diacrylates such as pentaerythritol triacrylate, ethylene glycol diacrylate, pentaerythritol diacrylate monostearate; trimethylolpropane triacrylate, pentaerythritol triacrylate, etc. (Meth) acrylate, pentaerythritol tetraacrylate derivative and dipentaerythritol pentaa Relate, dipentaerythritol hexaacrylate, polyfunctional (meth) acrylates such as multifunctional urethane acrylates or can These radical polymerizable monomers can be exemplified oligomers polymerized.

  Moreover, the polymer which has an ethylenically unsaturated bond synthesized the intermediate | middle polymer by radical (co) polymerizing the monomer or oligomer which has a polar group which can raise | generate an addition or condensation reaction with an ethylenically unsaturated bond in 1 molecule. Thereafter, it is obtained by reacting a compound having a functional group capable of reacting with the polar group of the intermediate polymer together with an ethylenically unsaturated bond in one molecule. Monomers or oligomers having such radically polymerizable groups and polar groups include epoxy (meth) acrylates, glycidyl (meth) acrylates, glycerol mono (meth) acrylates, glycerol di (meth) acrylates, 2- Hydroxyethyl (meth) acrylate and its caprolactone-modified product, 2-hydroxypropyl (meth) acrylate and its caprolactone-modified product, phosphoric acid (meth) acrylates, polyethylene glycol (meth) acrylates, polypropylene glycol (meth) acrylates, Examples thereof include (meth) acrylates, succinic acid acrylates, and acrylamides of polyethylene glycol-polypropylene glycol copolymers. In addition, as a compound used to introduce an ethylenically unsaturated bond pendant structure into an intermediate polymer, among the monomers or oligomers having a polar group together with the ethylenically unsaturated bond as exemplified above, an intermediate polymer Those capable of reacting with polar groups can be selected and used.

  The thickness of the hard coat layer is not particularly limited as long as the desired hardness can be exhibited, and can be, for example, about 5 μm to 30 μm. Here, the thickness of the hard coat layer refers to the thickness of a portion other than the uneven area of the hard coat layer when the hard coat layer has an uneven area on the surface. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the thickness t of the hard coat layer 3 other than the concavo-convex region 10 is defined as the thickness of the hard coat layer.

  As a method for forming the hard coat layer, for example, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied on the base material for the hard coat layer, a concave or convex portion or a curved surface is formed on the surface of the coating film, and the electron beam is irradiated. Then, a method of curing is mentioned. In addition, since the formation method of a hard-coat layer is described in detail in the section of “C. Method for manufacturing front plate for protecting touch panel” described later, description thereof is omitted here.

2. Transparent resin substrate The transparent resin substrate used in the present invention contains a thermoplastic resin composition.

  The thermoplastic resin composition used for the transparent resin substrate is preferably one that can be injection-molded or extruded as described in the section of the method for producing a front plate for protecting a touch panel described below. For example, polyethylene terephthalate Polyesters such as polyethylene naphthalate, polyolefins such as cyclic polyolefin, polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene, vinyl resins such as polyvinyl chloride and polyvinylidene chloride, acrylic resins such as polycarbonate and polymethacrylate, diacetyl cellulose, triacetyl cellulose , Cellulose resins such as cellulose acetate, polyamide resins such as nylon-6 and nylon-6, 6, polyimide resins, polyvinyl alcohol, ethylene vinyl alcohol, polyethersulfone, Polyether ketone, and the like.

  Among these, the transparent resin substrate preferably has a small in-plane retardation. Thereby, when using the touchscreen provided with the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention using sunglasses, generation | occurrence | production of display nonuniformity can be suppressed by phase difference. Examples of such transparent resin substrates include substrates such as polycarbonate, cycloolefin resin (cycloolefin polymer is also referred to as COP), and polymethyl methacrylate.

  The transparent resin substrate may be a single layer or a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers. In the case of a single layer, various shapes of transparent resin substrates can be obtained by one injection molding. On the other hand, when multiple transparent resin layers are laminated, by using different thermoplastic resin compositions for each transparent resin layer, the weather resistance, chemical resistance, impact resistance, etc. of the transparent resin substrate can be improved. The decorative layer can be directly formed on the surface of the transparent resin substrate on which the hard coat layer is not formed.

  When a plurality of transparent resin layers are laminated, the number of laminated transparent resin layers may be two or more, but usually two or three layers.

Further, when a plurality of transparent resin layers are laminated, a thermoplastic resin composition in which the transparent resin layer located on the outermost surface on the side where the hard coat layer of the transparent resin substrate is formed can be injection-molded or extruded. It is preferable to contain a product. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, when the transparent resin substrate 2 is a laminate of two transparent resin layers 2a and 2b, the transparent resin substrate 2 is formed on the outermost surface on the side where the hard coat layer 3 is formed. The transparent resin layer 2a positioned is preferably one that has been injection-molded or extruded.
On the other hand, the transparent resin layer 2b located on the outermost surface on the side where the hard coat layer 3 of the transparent resin substrate 2 is not formed has a thermoplastic resin composition having higher weather resistance and chemical resistance than the transparent resin layer 2a. It is preferable to use a thermoplastic resin composition capable of directly forming a decorative layer. The thermoplastic resin composition used for the transparent resin layer located on the outermost surface on the side where the hard coat layer of the transparent resin substrate is not formed is appropriately selected from the above-mentioned thermoplastic resin compositions according to the purpose. The For example, it is preferable to use an acrylic resin in order to improve weather resistance and chemical resistance and to form a decorative layer directly on the surface of the transparent resin substrate where the hard coat layer is not formed. In order to suppress the occurrence of display unevenness due to phase difference, it is preferable to use a transparent resin layer such as highly stretched polyethylene terephthalate, cycloolefin resin, polymethyl methacrylate, or the like.

  As illustrated in FIG. 6, the transparent resin substrate 2 preferably has a step portion 15 on the surface on which the hard coat layer 3 is not formed. When the transparent resin substrate has a stepped portion, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the decorative layer is formed on the decorative layer base material 5 on the surface of the transparent resin substrate 2 on which the hard coat layer 3 is not formed. When the decorative film 7 on which the decorative film 7 is formed is disposed, the decorative layer 6 of the decorative film 7 can be accommodated in the step portion 15 of the transparent resin substrate 2, and the decorative film is provided on the transparent resin substrate 2. It is possible to suppress the mixing of air bubbles between the transparent resin substrate 2 and the decorative film 7 due to the level difference caused by the decorative layer 6 when bonding 7 together, thereby improving the yield. Further, as illustrated in FIG. 8, when the touch panel protection front plate 1 of the present invention is disposed on the touch panel sensor unit 30 in which the transparent electrodes 32 and 33 and the wirings 34 and 35 are formed on the transparent resin substrate 31. In other words, the wiring 34 of the touch panel sensor unit 30 can be accommodated in the step portion 15 of the transparent resin substrate 2, and a touch panel having a small step between the operation region and the non-operation region can be obtained.

As described above, the step portion of the transparent resin substrate is used to accommodate, for example, the decoration layer of the decorative film, the wiring of the touch panel sensor portion, etc., and eliminates the step due to the decoration layer, the wiring, etc. To be formed.
The size and depth of the stepped portion are appropriately selected according to the use of the stepped portion.

The arrangement of the stepped portion is appropriately selected according to the use of the stepped portion. However, since the decorative layer, the wiring, etc. are arranged in the non-operating area of the touch panel, the stepped portion is provided before the touch panel protection of the present invention. When the face plate is used for the touch panel, it is preferably disposed in the non-operation area of the touch panel.
Moreover, the number of the step portions may be one or plural, and are appropriately selected according to the use of the step portions.

The transparent resin substrate is light transmissive. Specifically, the transmittance in the visible light region of the transparent resin substrate is preferably 80% or more, and more preferably 90% or more. It is because the transparent resin substrate excellent in light transmittance can be formed when the transmittance is in the above range.
The method for measuring the transmittance of the transparent resin substrate is the same as the method for measuring the transmittance of the hard coat layer.

  The thickness of the transparent resin substrate is not particularly limited as long as it can support the hard coat layer and can be formed by injection molding or extrusion molding, and is, for example, about 0.2 mm to 2 mm.

The method for forming the transparent resin substrate is not particularly limited as long as it is a method capable of laminating the transparent resin substrate and the hard coat layer, and among them, the injection molding method or the extrusion molding method is preferable.
Further, when the transparent resin substrate is a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers, the method for forming the transparent resin layer located on the outermost surface on the side where the hard coat layer of the transparent resin substrate is formed is an injection. A molding method or an extrusion molding method is preferred. On the other hand, the other transparent resin layer forming method may be an injection molding method or an extrusion molding method, or may be a method of applying a thermoplastic resin composition, or a transparent resin layer directly or via an adhesive layer. The method of pasting may be sufficient. Examples of the method for applying the thermoplastic resin composition include a printing method. For the adhesive layer, for example, an optical transparent adhesive called OCA can be used.

3. Hard coat layer base material In the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the hard coat layer base material 4 is formed between the transparent resin substrate 2 and the hard coat layer 3. Also good. That is, the hard coat layer is formed on the base material for the hard coat layer, and the laminate in which the hard coat layer base material and the hard coat layer are laminated may be integrated with the transparent resin substrate. . For example, when a hard coat layer is formed on a hard coat layer base material, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied on the hard coat layer base material and then cured by irradiation with an electron beam from the coating film side. In this case, the surface of the hard coat layer on the side where the hard coat layer base material is not formed has higher hardness than the surface on the side where the hard coat layer base material is formed. Therefore, by forming the transparent resin substrate on the hard coat layer base material side, the hard coat layer with a higher hardness can be disposed on the outermost surface of the touch panel protection front plate of the present invention. The scratch resistance can be further improved.

  The resin used for the base material for the hard coat layer is not particularly limited as long as the hard coat layer can be formed, and examples thereof include a thermoplastic resin composition used for the transparent resin substrate. .

  Especially, it is preferable that the base material for hard-coat layers has small in-plane retardation. Thereby, when using a touch panel provided with the front plate for touch panel protection of the present invention using sunglasses, the occurrence of display unevenness can be suppressed. Examples of such a base material for a hard coat layer include base materials such as highly stretched polyethylene terephthalate, cycloolefin resin, polymethyl methacrylate, and the like.

  The base material for hard-coat layers has a light transmittance. In addition, about the light transmittance of the base material for hard-coat layers, since it is the same as that of the said transparent resin substrate, description here is abbreviate | omitted.

  The thickness of the base material for hard-coat layers will not be specifically limited if it is the thickness which can support a hard-coat layer, For example, it is about 0.2 mm-2.0 mm.

4). Decorating layer The touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention may further have a decorating layer.

  The decorative layer is preferably disposed in the non-operating area of the touch panel when the touch panel protecting front plate of the present invention is used for the touch panel. In this case, the wiring and the like of the touch panel sensor unit can be hidden by the frame-shaped decoration layer, and the design can be improved. The decoration layer is also used for displaying marks such as characters, figures, symbols, and the like.

  As a formation position of a decoration layer, it selects suitably according to the structure of the front plate for touchscreen protection of this invention. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, when the transparent resin substrate 2 is formed by laminating a plurality of transparent resin layers 2a and 2b, the transparent resin substrate 2 has a surface on which the hard coat layer 3 is not formed. The decorative layer 6 may be formed. In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 11, when the hard coat layer base 4 is formed between the transparent resin substrate 2 and the hard coat layer 3, the hard coat layer base 4 and the hard coat layer are formed. The decorative layer 6 may be formed between the two. That is, the decorative layer 6 is formed on the base material 4 for the hard coat layer, and the laminate in which the hard coat layer 3 is formed so as to cover the decorative layer 6 is integrated with the transparent resin substrate 2. Also good. Moreover, as illustrated in FIG. 12 and FIG. 13, the decorative layer 6 is formed on the base material 5 for the decorative layer on the surface of the transparent resin substrate 2 on which the hard coat layer 3 is not formed. A decorative film 7 may be formed. In this case, as illustrated in FIG. 12, the decorative layer 6 of the decorative film 7 may be opposed to the transparent resin substrate 2, and for the decorative layer of the decorative film 7 as illustrated in FIG. The base material 5 may face the transparent resin substrate 2.

  Moreover, the decoration layer may have an opening part. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, when the decoration layer 6 is formed in a pattern and has the opening 6 a, the decoration is performed when the touch panel protection front plate 1 of the present invention is disposed on the touch panel sensor unit 30. By arranging the opening 6 a of the layer 6 on the wiring 34 of the touch panel sensor unit 30, it is possible to decorate with the decorative layer 6 and the wiring 34. Thereby, it is not necessary to form a decoration layer further under the opening part of a decoration layer, and the layer structure of the front plate for touch-panel protection of this invention can be simplified. Specifically, the opening of the decorative layer can be used to display a mark such as a character, a figure, or a symbol.

  Examples of the material for the decorative layer include a colored resin composition containing a binder resin and a colorant. Moreover, a metal layer can also be used for a decoration layer.

  The method for forming the decoration layer is not particularly limited as long as the method can form the decoration layer on the transparent resin substrate, the base material for the hard coat layer, or the base material for the decoration layer. In the case of using the colored resin composition, for example, printing methods such as gravure printing and screen printing, ink jet methods, photolithography methods and the like can be mentioned. Moreover, in the case of a metal layer, a vacuum evaporation method, sputtering method, etc. are mentioned, for example.

  The thickness of the decoration layer is appropriately selected according to the purpose.

When using the decorating film in which the decorating layer was formed on the base material for decorating layers, as a base material for decorating layers, the thing similar to the said base material for hard-coat layers can be used.
Moreover, when using a decorating film, as a method of arrange | positioning a decorating film on a transparent resin substrate, the method of bonding a decorating film directly or through an adhesive layer is mentioned, for example. For the adhesive layer, for example, an optical transparent adhesive called OCA can be used.

B. Touch Panel Sensor The touch panel sensor of the present invention has a touch panel sensor portion and the above-described touch panel protection front plate disposed on the touch panel sensor portion.

  FIG. 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of the touch panel sensor of the present invention. A touch panel sensor 100 in FIG. 15 includes a touch panel sensor unit 30 and a front panel 1 for protecting the touch panel disposed on the touch panel sensor 30. In the touch panel sensor unit 30, transparent electrodes 32 and 33 and wirings 34 and 35 are formed in a pattern on both surfaces of the transparent resin substrate 31, respectively. The configuration of the touch panel protecting front plate 1 has been described in the above section “A. Touch Panel Protecting Front Plate”, and a description thereof will be omitted here.

In this invention, since it has the above-mentioned front plate for touchscreen protection, the touchscreen sensor which is excellent in abrasion resistance and antifouling property, and can improve designability and operativity can be obtained.
Hereinafter, each structure in the touch-panel sensor of this invention is demonstrated.

1. Touch panel sensor part As a touch panel sensor part used for the present invention, a general touch panel sensor part can be used, and the kind and layer composition of each constituent member are not particularly limited. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 15, in the touch panel sensor unit 30, transparent electrodes 32 and 33 and wirings 34 and 35 may be formed in a pattern on both surfaces of the transparent resin substrate 31. Although not shown, the transparent electrode and the wiring are formed in a pattern on one surface of the transparent resin substrate, the interlayer insulating layer is formed thereon, and the transparent electrode and the wiring are further formed in a pattern on the interlayer insulating layer. May be. Although not shown, a transparent electrode and wiring are formed in a pattern directly on the transparent resin substrate of the touch panel protection front plate, an interlayer insulating layer is formed thereon, and the transparent electrode and wiring are further patterned thereon. It may be formed in a shape. An overcoat layer may be formed on the transparent electrode and the wiring.

2. Touch Panel Protection Front Plate The touch panel protection front plate used in the present invention has been described in detail in the above section “A. Touch Panel Protection Front Plate”, and will not be described here.

  As described above, when the front panel for protecting the touch panel has a decorative layer and the decorative layer has an opening, the opening of the decorative layer is a wiring of the touch panel sensor unit for the decoration. It is preferable to be arranged on the top.

C. The manufacturing method of the front plate for touchscreen protection The manufacturing method of the frontplate for touchscreen protection of this invention can be divided into two embodiments with the shaping | molding method of a transparent resin substrate. Each embodiment will be described below.

1. 1st embodiment The manufacturing method of the front plate for touch-panel protection of this embodiment is formed on a transparent resin substrate and the said transparent resin substrate, At least one part of the surface improves the designability improvement site | part and the operativity improvement site | part. A method for producing a front plate for protecting a touch panel, comprising: a concave or convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion, and a hard coat layer having at least one of a curved surface region having a curved surface, on a base material for a hard coat layer A hard coat layer forming step of applying an electron beam curable resin composition to the substrate, irradiating and curing with an electron beam to form a hard coat layer, and a laminate of the hard coat layer substrate and the hard coat layer. An injection molding step of placing in an injection mold, injecting and solidifying a thermoplastic resin composition in the injection mold, and laminating and integrating the laminate and the transparent resin substrate; It is characterized by having.

  16A to 16D are process diagrams showing an example of a method for manufacturing a touch panel protecting front plate according to this embodiment. First, although not shown in the drawing, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied onto the base material 4 for the hard coat layer, and on the coating film of the electron beam curable resin composition, a shaped film having concave and convex portions on the surface. Is pressed and cured by irradiating an electron beam from the side of the shaping film, and then the shaping film is peeled off. As shown in FIG. 16 (a), the uneven region 10 having concave portions 11a and convex portions 11b on the surface. A hard coat layer 3 having a hard coat layer base material 4 and a laminate 9 of the hard coat layer 3 is obtained. Next, as shown in FIG. 16B, the laminate 9 of the hard coat layer base material 4 and the hard coat layer 3 is disposed so that the hard coat layer 3 is in contact with the injection mold 51, and FIG. ), The thermoplastic resin composition 2A melted from the cylinder 52 is injected into the injection mold 51 and cooled. Thereafter, the transparent resin substrate 2 having the step portion 15 is formed on the laminate 9 as shown in FIG. In this way, the touch panel protecting front plate 1 is manufactured. For example, the recessed portion 11b is an operability improving portion as shown in FIG. 2A, or the recessed portion 11a is a design improving portion as shown in FIG. By using the front plate for a touch panel, high designability and operability can be imparted.

  17A to 17E are process diagrams showing another example of the method for manufacturing the touch panel protecting front plate of the present embodiment. First, as shown to Fig.17 (a), an electron beam curable resin composition is apply | coated on the base material 4 for hard-coat layers which has a recessed part and a convex part on the surface, and the coating film of an electron beam curable resin composition An electron beam is irradiated from the side and cured to obtain a laminate 9 of the base material 4 for hard coat layer and the hard coat layer 3. Next, as shown in FIG. 17B, the hard coat layer base material 4 and the laminate 9 of the hard coat layer 3 are arranged so that the hard coat layer base material 4 is in contact with the injection mold 51. As shown in 17 (c), the thermoplastic resin composition 2 A melted from the cylinder 52 is injected into the injection mold 51 and cooled. Thereafter, the transparent resin substrate 2 having the stepped portion 15 is formed on the laminate 9 as shown in FIG. Next, as shown in FIG. 17 (d), the hard coat layer base material 4 is peeled from the hard coat layer 3, and as shown in FIG. 17 (e), the surface has concave portions 11a and convex portions 11b. The hard coat layer 3 having the uneven area 10 is formed. In this way, the touch panel protecting front plate 1 is manufactured. For example, the recessed portion 11b is an operability improving portion as shown in FIG. 2A, or the recessed portion 11a is a design improving portion as shown in FIG. By using the front plate for a touch panel, high designability and operability can be imparted.

  In this embodiment, since the hard coat layer is formed by curing the electron beam curable resin composition by electron beam irradiation, it is possible to obtain a touch panel protecting front plate excellent in scratch resistance and antifouling property. Moreover, since it hardens | cures by electron beam irradiation, the hard-coat layer which has said uneven | corrugated | grooved area | region and curved surface area | region can be formed in the surface, without reducing hardness, and designability and operativity can be improved. Furthermore, since the hard coat layer is excellent in strength, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of cracks in the hard coat layer due to stress during molding in the injection molding process. Therefore, it becomes possible to mold the transparent resin substrate into various shapes.

  Hereinafter, each process in the manufacturing method of the front plate for touch-panel protection of this embodiment is demonstrated.

(1) Hard coat layer forming step In the hard coat layer forming step in this embodiment, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied on a base material for a hard coat layer, and cured by irradiation with an electron beam. Is a step of forming.

  As an electron beam curable resin composition, what was described in the above-mentioned item of "A. Front plate for touch panel protection 1. Hard coat layer" can be used. Moreover, since it described in the said "A. Front plate for touchscreen protection 3. Base material for hard coat layers" about the base material for hard-coat layers, description here is abbreviate | omitted.

  Examples of the application method of the electron beam curable resin composition include known methods such as spin coating, roll coating, and bar coating.

  For electron beam irradiation, for example, 50 to 1000 keV emitted from various electron beam accelerators such as a cockcroft Walton type, a bandegraft type, a resonant transformer type, an insulated core transformer type, a linear type, a dynamitron type, and a high frequency type. An electron beam having an energy of 100 to 300 keV is preferably used.

  As a method of forming a hard coat layer having a concavo-convex region on the surface, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied on a substrate for a hard coat layer, a concave or convex portion is formed on the coating film, and an electron beam is formed. A method of curing by irradiation can be used. Examples of the method for shaping the recesses or projections include a method of transferring the recesses or projections using a shaping film, embossing, and the like.

  In addition, as a method of forming a hard coat layer having a curved region on the surface, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied on a substrate for a hard coat layer, a curved surface is formed on the coating film, and an electron beam is irradiated. Then, a curing method can be used. Examples of the curved surface shaping method include press working, vacuum forming, pressure forming, and heat press forming.

  Since the hard coat layer to be formed is described in the above section “A. Front panel for protecting touch panel 1. Hard coat layer”, description thereof is omitted here.

(2) Injection molding process The injection molding process in this embodiment arrange | positions the said laminated body of the said base material for hard-coat layers, and the said hard-coat layer in an injection mold, and puts a thermoplastic resin composition in the said injection-mold. It is a step of injecting and solidifying and laminating and integrating the laminate and the transparent resin substrate.

  As the thermoplastic resin composition, the thermoplastic resin composition described in the above section “A. Touch panel protecting front plate 2. Transparent resin substrate” can be used.

  The temperature, pressure, and the like when the thermoplastic resin composition is injection-molded are appropriately selected according to the type of the thermoplastic resin composition.

  When the transparent resin substrate is a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers, the thermoplastic resin composition may be injection-molded a plurality of times. In addition, when the transparent resin substrate is a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers, another thermoplastic resin composition is applied on the injection-molded transparent resin layer to form a transparent resin layer, or Another transparent resin layer may be bonded directly or via an adhesive layer.

  The transparent resin substrate to be formed has been described in the above section “A. Front panel for protecting touch panel 2. Transparent resin substrate”, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

(3) Other processes In this embodiment, in addition to the hard coat layer forming process and the injection molding process, there may be a process of forming a decorative layer, a process of peeling the base material for the hard coat layer, and the like. it can.

2. Second Embodiment A method for producing a front panel for protecting a touch panel according to the present embodiment is formed on a transparent resin substrate and the transparent resin substrate, and at least part of the design improvement site and the operability improvement site are formed on at least a part of the surface. A method for producing a front plate for protecting a touch panel, comprising: a concave or convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion, and a hard coat layer having at least one of a curved surface region having a curved surface, on a base material for a hard coat layer Applying an electron beam curable resin composition to the substrate, curing it by irradiating with an electron beam, forming a hard coat layer, and extrusion molding the thermoplastic resin composition to form a transparent resin substrate And a lamination step of fusing the transparent resin substrate to a laminate of the hard coat layer substrate and the hard coat layer. The

  18A to 18D are process diagrams illustrating an example of a method for manufacturing a touch panel protecting front plate according to the present embodiment. First, although not shown in the drawing, an electron beam curable resin composition is applied onto the base material 4 for the hard coat layer, and on the coating film of the electron beam curable resin composition, a shaped film having concave and convex portions on the surface. After the film is laminated and cured by irradiating the electron beam from the shaping film side, the shaping film is peeled off, and as shown in FIG. 16 (a), the uneven region 10 having the concave portions 11a and the convex portions 11b on the surface. A hard coat layer 3 having a hard coat layer base material 4 and a laminate 9 of the hard coat layer 3 is obtained. Moreover, as shown to Fig.18 (a), a thermoplastic resin composition is extrusion-molded and the transparent resin substrate 2 is formed. Next, as shown in FIG. 18B, the transparent resin substrate 2 is fused to the laminate 9 of the hard coat layer base material 4 and the hard coat layer 3. Next, as shown in FIG. 18C, the transparent resin substrate 2 is embossed using a mold 53 to form a transparent resin substrate 2 having a stepped portion 15 as shown in FIG. To do. In this way, the touch panel protecting front plate 1 is manufactured. For example, the recessed portion 11b is an operability improving portion as shown in FIG. 2A, or the recessed portion 11a is a design improving portion as shown in FIG. By using the front plate for a touch panel, high designability and operability can be imparted.

  In this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, it is possible to obtain a front panel for protecting a touch panel that has excellent scratch resistance and antifouling properties and can improve design and operability.

  Since the hard coat layer forming step is the same as that in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted here. Hereinafter, other steps in the method for manufacturing the touch panel protecting front plate of the present embodiment will be described.

(1) Extrusion molding step The extrusion molding step in the present embodiment is a step of forming a transparent resin substrate by extruding a thermoplastic resin composition.

  As the thermoplastic resin composition, the thermoplastic resin composition described in the above section “A. Touch panel protecting front plate 2. Transparent resin substrate” can be used.

  The temperature, pressure and the like when extruding the thermoplastic resin composition are appropriately selected according to the type of the thermoplastic resin composition.

  When the transparent resin substrate is a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers, the thermoplastic resin composition may be coextruded. In addition, when the transparent resin substrate is a laminate of a plurality of transparent resin layers, another thermoplastic resin composition is applied on the extruded transparent resin layer to form a transparent resin layer, or Another transparent resin layer may be bonded directly or via an adhesive layer.

  The transparent resin substrate to be formed has been described in the above section “A. Front panel for protecting touch panel 2. Transparent resin substrate”, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

(2) Lamination process The lamination process in this embodiment is a process of fusing the transparent resin substrate to the laminate of the hard coat layer and the hard coat layer.

  The temperature, pressure, and the like when the transparent resin substrate is fused to the laminate are appropriately selected according to the type of the thermoplastic resin composition.

(3) Step part formation process In this embodiment, the process of forming a step part in a transparent resin substrate may be performed after the above-mentioned lamination process.
Moreover, the formation of the stepped portion on the transparent resin substrate and the formation of the uneven region or the curved surface region on the hard coat layer can be performed simultaneously.

Examples of the method for forming the stepped portion include embossing and pressing.
The temperature, pressure, and the like when forming the step portion are appropriately selected according to the type of the thermoplastic resin composition.

  In addition, about the level | step-difference part formed, since it described in the term of the said "A. Front plate for touchscreen protection 2. Transparent resin substrate", description here is abbreviate | omitted.

(4) Other steps In this embodiment, in addition to the hard coat layer forming step, the extrusion molding step, and the laminating step, a step of forming a decorative layer, a step of peeling the base material for the hard coat layer, and the like. Can have.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The above-described embodiment is an exemplification, and the present invention has substantially the same configuration as the technical idea described in the claims of the present invention, and any device that exhibits the same function and effect is the present invention. It is included in the technical scope of the invention.

Experimental examples will be shown below to describe the present invention in more detail.
[Experimental Example 1]
(Formation of hard coat layer)
First, a curable resin composition was prepared according to Table 1 below.
The components of the curable resin composition in Table 1 are shown below.
Si dispersion: Si dispersion DP-1222 manufactured by JGC Catalysts & Chemicals Co., Ltd., primary particle size 12 μm
・ Initiator: Radical polymerization initiator Irgacure 907 manufactured by Ciba Specialty Chemicals
-Leveling agent: DIC Corporation leveling agent TF1682
Additive monomer: Pentaerythritol triacrylate Solvent: Propylene glycol 1-monomethyl ether 2-acetate

  Next, a Toray-made PET film having a thickness of 100 μm was used as the transparent substrate, and the curable resin composition was applied onto the transparent substrate with a bar coater so that the thickness after curing was 14 μm. Next, after heating the PET film coated with the curable resin composition at 80 ° C. for 3 minutes, the curable resin composition was cured by the method shown in Table 1 below to form a hard coat layer.

(Formation of transparent resin substrate)
The PET film on which the hard coat layer is formed is placed in an injection mold so that the surface of the hard coat layer is on the outside, the thermoplastic resin composition is injection-formed, and the PET on which the hard coat layer is formed The film and the transparent resin substrate were laminated and integrated. Thereby, the front plate for touch panel protection was obtained.

(Evaluation)
The hard coat layer of the obtained front panel for protecting the touch panel was evaluated for pencil hardness and fingerprint wiping property.
(Pencil hardness test)
The pencil hardness test (4.9 N load) defined by JIS K5600-5-4 (1999) was used for evaluation.
(Fingerprint wiping test)
A finger coated with oleic acid was pressed against the surface of the hard coat layer and wiped three times using a Toray-made Toraysee MK clean cloth, and the ease of wiping was visually determined. The evaluation criteria were as follows.
A: No fingerprint is attached.
○: The fingerprint can be wiped off.
Δ: Fingerprints cannot be wiped off.

  Although the hard coat layer of Experimental Example 1-1 was slightly inferior in antifouling property, even when the finger was pressed against the surface, it was difficult to attach a fingerprint, and the attached fingerprint could be easily wiped off. The hard coat layers of Experimental Examples 1-2 and 1-3 were excellent in antifouling properties, and no fingerprint was attached even when the finger was pressed against the surface. On the other hand, the hard coat layers of Comparative Examples 1-1 and 1-2 were inferior in antifouling property, and when a finger was pressed against the surface, a clear fingerprint was attached and could not be easily wiped off. It has been confirmed that the electron beam curing technique is more advantageous for forming a hard coat layer on the front plate for protecting the touch panel than the ultraviolet curing technique.

[Experiment 2]
A touch panel protecting front plate was produced in the same manner as in Experimental Example 1 except that a transparent resin substrate was formed as shown below.
(Formation of transparent resin substrate)
The PET film on which the hard coat layer is formed is placed in an injection mold so that the surface of the hard coat layer is on the inside, the thermoplastic resin composition is injection-formed, and the PET on which the hard coat layer is formed The film and the transparent resin substrate were laminated and integrated. Then, the front plate for touchscreen protection was obtained by peeling PET film.

(Evaluation)
When the hard coat layer of the obtained touch panel protecting front plate was evaluated for the pencil hardness and the fingerprint wiping property in the same manner as in Experimental Example 1, the same results were obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Front plate for touchscreen protection 2 ... Transparent resin substrate 3 ... Hard-coat layer 4 ... Base material for hard-coat layers 5 ... Base material for decorating layers 6 ... Decorating layer 7 ... Decorating film 10 ... Uneven area 11a ... Concave part 11b ... Convex part 15 ... Step part 20 ... Curved surface area 21 ... Curved surface 30 ... Touch panel sensor part 100 ... Touch panel sensor

Claims (9)

A transparent resin substrate containing a thermoplastic resin composition;
A touch panel protecting front plate having a hard coat layer formed on the transparent resin substrate and formed by curing an electron beam curable resin composition,
The hard coat layer has at least one of a concave / convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion, which is at least one of a designability improving portion and an operability improving portion, and a curved surface region having a curved surface, on at least a part of the surface. A touch panel protection front plate.   The touch panel protecting front plate according to claim 1, wherein the transparent resin substrate has a step portion on a surface on which the hard coat layer is not formed.   The touch panel protecting front plate according to claim 1, wherein a base material for a hard coat layer is formed between the transparent resin substrate and the hard coat layer.   The touch panel protecting front plate according to claim 3, wherein a decoration layer is formed between the hard coat layer base material and the hard coat layer.   2. A decorative film in which a decorative layer is formed on a base material for a decorative layer is formed on a surface of the transparent resin substrate on which the hard coat layer is not formed. A touch panel protecting front plate according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   The touch panel protecting front plate according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the decorative layer has an opening. A touch panel sensor unit;
A touch panel sensor, comprising: a front panel for protecting a touch panel according to any one of claims 1 to 6 disposed on the touch panel sensor section. A transparent resin substrate, a concavo-convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion, which is at least one of a design improvement site and an operability improvement site, and a curved surface having a curved surface, formed on at least a part of the surface of the transparent resin substrate. A method for manufacturing a front plate for protecting a touch panel having a hard coat layer having at least one of the regions,
A hard coat layer forming step of applying an electron beam curable resin composition on a base material for a hard coat layer, curing by irradiation with an electron beam, and forming a hard coat layer;
The laminate for the hard coat layer and the laminate of the hard coat layer are placed in an injection mold, the thermoplastic resin composition is injected into the injection mold and solidified, and the laminate and the transparent resin substrate are laminated. A method for manufacturing a front panel for protecting a touch panel, comprising: an injection molding step to be integrated. A transparent resin substrate, a concavo-convex region having a concave portion or a convex portion, which is at least one of a design improvement site and an operability improvement site, and a curved surface having a curved surface, formed on at least a part of the surface of the transparent resin substrate. A method for manufacturing a front plate for protecting a touch panel having a hard coat layer having at least one of the regions,
A hard coat layer forming step of applying an electron beam curable resin composition on a base material for a hard coat layer, curing by irradiation with an electron beam, and forming a hard coat layer;
An extrusion process for extruding a thermoplastic resin composition to form a transparent resin substrate;
A method for producing a front panel for protecting a touch panel, comprising: a step of fusing the transparent resin substrate to a laminate of the base material for hard coat layer and the hard coat layer.

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